Charging devices for charging a combustion engine are generally known. Charging devices operating with a turbine, particularly exhaust gas turbochargers, can be equipped with a variable turbine geometry, so-called VTG, and/or with a controllable bypass, so-called waste gate, for the power regulation of the charging device or of the turbine. For controlling the bypass or the waste gate, a corresponding bypass valve or waste gate valve is provided, which can for example be a flap that can be pivoted open against a resetting spring. Here, actuation of the waste gate valve is effected via a rotary movement. For actuating the waste gate valve the respective charging device can be equipped with a driving device which operates with an adjusting drive for the linear driving of a driving member. For example, the adjusting drive is equipped as pneumatic actuator or pressure box, with the help of which a driving member can be linearly driven. Problematic now is the coupling between a linearly driven driving member and an actuation member of the respective adjusting device to be driven in a rotary manner, i.e. the waste gate valve in this case. For during the linear movement of the driving member the relative position between driving member and actuation member changes because of the rotary movement of the actuation member. To make this possible, a connecting device of the type mentioned at the outset can be used, since it provides a jointed connection between the linearly driving driving member and the actuation member to be driven in a rotary manner. In addition, unfavorable installation situations, oblique positions and assembly tolerances can be offset with such a connecting device. Corresponding problems also materialize upon the actuation of a VTG.
From FR 2 823 795 B1 it is known with an exhaust gas turbocharger to equip the driving member of the connecting device or of the driving device with a ball head and to equip the actuating member for the pivoting of the flap of the waste gate valve with a ball head mounting. Such a ball head joint makes possible the required spatial relative movements between driving member and actuating member. Realizing such a ball head mounting can involve a comparatively major effort because of the required manufacturing precision.
Additional connecting devices with exhaust gas turbochargers or corresponding driving devices of this type are known from JP 2003-148155 A and from EP 0 976 919 B1.
From EP 1 256 703 B1 another connecting device is known, wherein the driving member and the actuating member are interconnected in a fixed manner, wherein the driving member consists of a flexurally elastic wire cable so that the driving member itself acts as joint and can absorb the changes in the relative position between driving member and actuating member that occur during the adjusting movement through elastic deformation.